Twitter acquires ad firm TapCommerce for US$100m

Microblogging site Twitter is in the latter stages of its latest acquisition, online ad firm TapCommerce, for US$100m.

Twitter’s new company joins the ever-growing list of mobile advertising companies, with TapCommerce specifically involved in retargeting and re-engagement through smartphones.

Twitter now hopes to use TapCommerce’s software and services to keep its advertising strategies on track and to target users by getting them to revisit apps they have downloaded and, perhaps, gotten tired of until now.

TapCommerce has proven to be one of the better companies involved in online advertising and has previously had customers including eBay and a number of mobile-gaming companies.

“Consumers are starting to use their phones not just to install and use apps, but for making purchases of both virtual and real-world products and services," Twitter said in a statement.

“Advertisers spend aggressively to get new users, but re-activating existing or previous users can provide just as attractive a return on investment. Programmatic buying is increasingly the method of choice for advertisers and brands who want to buy in mobile, because it allows for more granular targeting and messaging.”

Twitter adds ‘buy now’ button

On the same day it announced its latest marketing acquisition, Twitter also rolled out its latest advertising weapon, the ‘buy now’ button.

From today, paid-for tweets featuring products or services will now include the button for instant purchasing direct through the site, according to Re/code.

Last May, Twitter agreed to a deal with Amazon to make users purchase items with the help of the online retailer and now it appears, for some stores at least, that this is now possible.